Overall, this cruise was below our expectations, not entirely due to ships fault as the weather did not cooperate with us at all. Out of 7 days, we were at see 2.5 days (first half day, second full day and 7th full day). Alaska offers gorgeous scenery, beautiful views and interesting wild life experiences. I think stops in more populated areas would have improved our experience and a larger selection of excursions. I really wanted to see the bears eating salmon, but that didn't work out. Wanted to see the Hubbard Glacier, and that didn't work out (due to weather). Glad we went, but I doubt I'll be coming back.
Embarkation
5 out of 5
Embarkation was fast, easy and very organized.
Ship experiences
Food and Dining
3 out of 5
Food was a bit below average in the dining rooms and buffets. In general, there was a lot of fried food, a lot of macaroni, rice, mashed potatoes and hamburgers. I was expecting a more interesting culinary experience and since I do not eat fried food, rice, potatoes or macaroni, my selections were quite limited through different venues (not specialty restaurants as I did not try them). Buffets had a limited selection with again, lots of macaroni, fried food, hamburgers, potatoes and rice. They did have lots of salad options, fruit and sweets.
Onboard Activities
3 out of 5
Weather was against us and pretty much all activities were inside. There was music performances, live singers and Zumba classes, Bingo (if you are into Bingo), pre-recorded music, and a couple of others which I was not interested in. And, there was live music in a bar where you can get all kinds of alcoholic drinks.
Entertainment
2 out of 5
Ships stage shows, DJ's and singers were not what I was expecting.
Service and Staff
4 out of 5
Staff was very well trained, polite and respectful.
Ship Quality
2 out of 5
It was advertised as a ship that was remodeled in 2016, however, not the whole ship was remodeled. Staterooms were not remodeled, they were old, still very clean. Main ship areas were renovated and in great condition. Ship design is old which required a lot of running around to get from one place to the next. Just trying to get around the ship, we put in about 6,000 steps a day.
Cabin / Stateroom
1 out of 5
Overall, the size of the cabin was decent. It was as clean as a 20 year old cabin can be. Our stateroom had dirty and torn curtains leading out to the balcony. Bathroom was extremely outdated with below par shower that did not produce consistent hot water. Taking cold water shower in Alaska is not exciting.
Ship tip
best time to sail to Alaska is June and first part of July. Anything after that, is colder and gloomier.
There's more to do in Skagway, also, you can buy an excursion right in Skagway. We did a tour of the city (highlights) and looked at racing dogs. That took about 2 hours, then we were on our own in the small town. Lots of shopping. We also purchased a whale watching excursion right in the city and that was pretty interesting.
Unless you are into sports and sport activities and have purchased an excursion, there's absolutely nothing to see or do in that port. We were in the port, viewed, did the Tran ride, looked around and back on the ship in an hour and a half.
Lots of things to see and do. Two of the main attractions are to visit the Victoria Island (just beautiful) and Butchart Gardens. City tour was good too, all purchased outside of the ship.
It kills me to hear people say there's nothing to do in Alaskan ports. If you'd do some research before your cruise you'd find excursions and they're plentiful.
Besides excursions through the ships are more expensive than if you looked on Aviator or other excursion sites. We've been to Alaska twice and never had a problem finding an excursion or something to do in any port.
Thank you for the review. Too bad you didn't enjoy much. Yes, probably a good thing if you don't go back. Alaska will not be able to meet those expectations. You want to go early in the season but want to see bears eating salmon which only happens late in the season. You want to go to big population areas but the one big city in the area, Juneau, was boring. Weather can be bad anytime in Alaska. Hopefully you find a new ship (which can be twice the size of this one) that has everything close together so you don't have to walk as much as on a small ship.
Thanks for the review. Cruising in May or June generally provides better weather in Alaska. Tried booking excursions independently from the ship since there are plenty of options in the ports that you visited.
*Cruiseline.com is not a booking agent or travel agency,
and does not charge any service fees to users of our site. Our partners
(travel agencies and cruise lines) provide prices, which we list for our
users' convenience. Cruiseline.com does not guarantee any specific rates or
prices. While prices are updated daily, please check with the booking site
for the exact amount. Cruiseline.com is not responsible for content on
external web sites.
Contact us
Submitting...
Need help from a personal vacation planner?
Loading...
Find the perfect cruise with weekly tips and cruise deals for as little as $30/night!
Sign up for weekly cruise deals
Join other subscribers and get the best
cruise deals of the week in your inbox every Thursday.
